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Blatter joins Philippine FA centenary celebrations

(FIFA.com) 10 Dec 2007

En route to the FIFA Club World Cup in Japan, Joseph S. Blatter
stopped off in the Philippines on Friday to attend the national
FA's 100th anniversary celebrations.

After a whistle-stop visit to Singapore's Changi Airport,
where he dropped in at the very first FIFA store (due to open its
doors on 16 January 2008), Mr Blatter headed to the Philippines, a
country of 85 million inhabitants and made up of more than 7,000
islands. His first port of call was an afternoon press conference
at the Philippine FA's headquarters, where he was joined by PFF
President Jose Mari Martinez, and the President of the Asian
Confederation Mohamed Bin Hammam.

Mr Martinez began by speaking of his delight at welcoming the
two international organisations to his country. "We have been
looking forward to the opportunity to work hand in hand with FIFA
and the AFC to develop Philippine football." In response
President Blatter said, "The FIFA family, which includes FIFA
and the AFC, is here to help the Philippines promote the
development of the sport in a country that has a long footballing
tradition."

Paulino Alcantara and the futureTwo Goal Projects have previously been implemented in the
country. The first of them involved the construction of the
national coaching centre and adjoining pitches in 2001. This was
followed in 2006 by the building of a stadium devoted solely to
football in Manila. And while basketball remains the No 1 sport in
Philippines, the game does have a very large following, having been
introduced in the country many years ago (click here for linked
article), as AFC President Bin Hammam explained. "The
Philippines has a longstanding tradition of football, as shown by
the 100 years of the PPF's existence. It is our sincere wish
that this symbolic number is but the platform for the future
development of Philippine football."

To mark its centenary the national FA organised a gala dinner
that combined traditional music and dance. Other highlights
included a video narrating the history of the PFF and a special
ceremony recognising the achievements of the country's greatest
players, among them Paulino Alcantara, who enjoyed two lengthy
spells with Barcelona at the start of the last century.

Blatter took the opportunity to speak of the country's
rich footballing heritage. "Football in the Philippines goes
back a long way. You were founder members of the AFC and one of the
oldest members of FIFA. I truly hope that this one hundredth
anniversary presents you with the opportunity to bolster the
development of the sport in your country and to set new goals for
the future."

Following the evening's festivities the joint FIFA/AFC
delegation will visit the Tuloy Sa Don Bosco Children's Village
on Saturday, where the PFF will stage a special youth
tournament.